The Cozy Mystery List Blog

Cozy Mystery (and Other Favorite) Books, Movies, and TV

Foyle’s War Television Mystery Series

When Inspector Morse stopped production, Foyle’s War was to be its ITV short-term replacement. However, since it was such a huge success, more seasons were made. (Lucky for us!)

The series takes place in England during WWII. Foyle (played by Michael Kitchen) is a British police detective during the early 1940s who does not want to work as a civilian detective. He is forced to remain a non-military detective. His assignment is to work the crimes not deemed of a military nature, and he excels at this job he doesn’t particularly want.

Foyle does not drive, making it necessary for him to have an assigned driver – enter Honeysuckle Weeks (as Sam – as in Samantha.) Anthony Howell plays Foyle’s sergeant – a man wounded in the war >>> both emotionally & physically. The acting is terrific!~

Foyle’s War series takes place in quaint British villages – however, the devastation of WWII is apparent. Large stately mansions have been converted into hospitals for the troops, cobblestone streets wind through bombed-out sections of villages, it is not all cozy, quaint, and picturesque.

Michael Kitchen displays his pensive & expressive facial mannerisms, which is normal fare for him. Honeysuckle Weeks is too adorable for words. The productions are far superior to most US detective shows, the ambiance, settings, wardrobe, hair styles (especially Sam’s) are exactly what I would expect of the time and location of the series.

Anthony Horowitz both created and wrote scripts for the Foyle’s War series. Horowitz is responsible for writing other British series: Bravo to him!

The only negative I have about the show is when WWII ends. Why mess with perfection? I know I am in the decided minority on this, though. Even though Christopher Foyle didn’t want to investigate civilian crimes during WWII, I wanted him to so!

For more movie and television show recommendations, visit the TV and Movies page on my site.

As of this post, Foyle’s War is available on Acorn.

Bleak House Television Series

First let me say that my husband absolutely loves Charles Dickens. I, however, find a lot of his novels very sad and dark. The downtrodden seem to always be made more oppressed.  With that in mind, I must admit that I wasn’t all that keen to watch the Bleak House miniseries. However, having watched Gillian Anderson as she portrayed Scully in the X Files, I decided, why not! Imagine my surprise when I watched it and loved it!

Bleak House, the British miniseries based on Charles Dickens’ novel, is probably the best BBC production made in 2005. If I had to limit myself to one adjective, “Superb” would be my choice.

This BBC production stars a myriad of actors & actresses – each perfecting their characters. The settings are exactly as we would expect in a work by Dickens. Deep suffering & frustration is depicted in the dark, filthy, and murky scenes which feature the truly poor. The settings which show the lives of the rich are light, airy, opulent: deep, velvety furniture, high ceilings with paintings of finely-clad ancestors, servants with serving platters, etc.

The acting is a treat to watch. Anna Maxwell Martin is refreshingly unaffected as Esther (main character). I had never seen her before seeing Bleak House, and enjoyed her immensely. Denis Lawson does a wonderful job as the grounding “good man” in the production. Gillian Anderson surprised me! She was phenomenal as Lady Dedlock – (not at all Scully-ish!) Nathanial Parker is delightful as a simpering ninny. Warren Clarke (from Dalziel & Pascoe), Burn Gorman, Pauline Collins, and Alren Armstrong were all excellent in their parts — although as a fan of their work, I would have enjoyed seeing more of them!

This Victorian period piece drama is a treat to watch. As with most Dickens’ novels, some of the characters’ names are a delightful surprise. An example of this, Pauline Collins’ “Bird Lady” character is Miss Flite. (I wracked my brain to remember which Dickens’ novel had “Uriah Heep”! >>> David Copperfield)

The screenplay for Bleak House was written by Andrew Davies. If you are a follower/fan of fine British television productions, you no doubt recognize his name. He is responsible for the screenplays of many top-notch British productions.

I strongly recommend this production of Bleak House. It is currently on BritBox.

P.S. This is not a mystery – well, actually, there is a mystery of sorts… but it’s not a traditional “mystery show.”

Scott & Bailey British Television Mystery Series

Scott & Bailey is yet another well-written British police procedural television series. It features a team of strong, smart women. (As a matter of fact, an inordinately high number of women >>> sort of the reverse of what is typical in a “smart” police TV show.)

Scott & Bailey, an ITV production, features two (women) detectives who not only work together, they also rely on each other as friends. The series begins as the senior detective Janet Scott (played wonderfully by Lesley Sharp) is training her partner Rachel Bailey (played by Suranne Jones – another wonderful performance). These ladies work in the Major Incident Team – which handles murders. As with all jobs, sometimes the lines between underlings & their bosses are blurred when there is too good of a personal relationship.

These two women, while both extremely smart and dedicated to their jobs, are very different. The older of the two (Janet) has a family – two daughters, a husband, and her mother. Janet’s very long, erratic hours add to Janet’s character. Janet seems to be pulled in all directions.

Rachel, on the other hand, lives for Rachel, Rachel’s job, and Rachel’s enjoyment. The two women couldn’t be any more different! (I read somewhere that one of the creators of the show was a Cagney & Lacey fan. If you’ve watched those shows then you’ll see the remarkable similarities.)

The third strong woman in this show is Detective Chief Inspector Gill Murray, played by Amelia Bullmore. The actress brings the right touches needed for being a tough boss with a heart. Detective Superintendent Julie Dodson (Pippa Haywood) is a friend of Gill’s who frequently comes to the office for work-related reasons and/or because of their friendship.

There is one downfall of the show: the men. I enjoyed these secondary characters, but thought they all came off as losers. When there is a promotion to replace the second-in-command of the office, it left me wondering why not one of the men had passed his sergeant’s exam!

As I mentioned before, I enjoyed Scott & Bailey. It is not a Cozy television show, and (at least at the moment) available on Amazon Prime.

For more movie and television show recommendations, visit the TV and Movies page on my site.

After Henry, British TV Show

Since I’m telling you about this very good half hour show on the Cozy Mystery site, I better “warn you” that it’s not a mystery. However, it is written by one of the best mystery writers of our time: Simon Brett. (That’s right, the same Simon Brett whose 1987 Charles Paris mystery – What Bloody Man Is That? is on the Crime Writers’ Association – Top 100 Crime Novels of All Time list!)

A lot of you are already familiar with one (or more) of Simon Brett’s mystery series: Fethering Mystery Series, Charles Paris Mystery Series, Mrs. Pargeter Mystery Series, or his Blotto and Twinks Mystery Series  – not to mention his stand alone books.

My husband and I started watching After Henry (a British half hour sitcom with a lot of heart) not knowing Simon Brett had written a book by that title (After Henry), nor did we know that he wrote all the episodes in this terrrific four season TV series.

After Henry stars the fantastic Prunella Scales (Miss Mapp in the Mapp & Lucia television series and Sybil Fawlty, long-suffering wife from Fawlty Towers) as Sarah. Sarah, a widow, lives in a multi-floor house with her mother (phenomenally played  by Joan Sanderson) and her young adult daughter (more terrific acting by Janine Wood). The “catch” is that they all live on their own floor – in their own apartments, but Sarah is barely ever alone! Unfortunately Sarah is sandwiched between the top floor’s daughter and her mother in the bottom floor. This all leaves Sarah with more of a caretaker’s duties – dutily taking care of her mother as well as pampering her daughter.

The chemistry between the three women is really touching – as well as humorous. Sarah works in a small, cozy bookstore that specializes in rare books. Russell, her boss (played perfectly by Jonathan Newth) often finds himself listening to Sarah’s family problems, and lending her advice on how to deal with the frustrations she has to endure. Sarah’s mother often visits the bookshop, so Russell sees first-hand what Sarah is up against! The rapport between Russell and Sarah’s mother is terrific. Russell sort of plays along – while knowing what the situation really is… which is a lot different than Sarah’s mother sees it.

After Henry aired from 1988 to 1992 and is set during that time frame. All three characters have their own well-furnished apartment/floor and as I mentioned before, the bookshop is very Cozy. This “sitcom” harkens back to that time >>> I find myself telling my husband that some of Sarah’s outfits look like those I wore while teaching school. (That’s really beside the point!)

I strongly recommend After Henry. It’s not a mystery but it sure is good!

P.S. My husband and I are watching this series on Acorn TV.

For more Cozy viewing ideas, click on my Cozy Mystery TV & Movies page.

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